Not your typical Disney fairy tale
Issue #25
Earlier this month, something pretty significant happened in the kids' app landscape: Disney, Viacom and 10 advertising technology firms found themselves embroiled in a class-action lawsuit alleging that they placed tracking software in kids' apps—all without parents’ knowledge or consent. While the companies haven't admitted any wrongdoing, they have agreed to remove certain advertising software to address allegations that they violated millions of kids' privacy.
We're talking about games like Subway Surfers, which has been downloaded around 1.5 billion times. These hugely popular apps apparently contain trackers that can be used to profile children across different devices—and serve them targeted ads and encourage in-app purchases. Even though the story only got a small write-up in the New York Times, I think it's a big deal, and here's why: these are massive and well-loved companies.
When we think about insidious data tracking, we usually think about Facebook. After all, they have a long and very public history of privacy violations. But, they are also the company that is the most "under the microscope." I suspect that, because of all the negative press and scrutiny they've received, they can't get away with the same kind of shenanigans that they once could.
The fact that Disney was actively participating in extremely questionable data tracking is a little surprising to me, mostly because it seems like a huge risk to their brand equity. (Again, just look at the general sentiments towards Facebook.) What this tells me is that many companies are willing to go to great lengths to get ads in front of our kids. This story flew under the radar, but I think this is a massive issue that we need to talk about. When it comes to technology, kids are a large and growing user base. And large companies keep trying to treat them the same way they treat adults by tracking them and showing them targeted ads.
The kind of data tracking adults experience every day is... pervasive. I suspect that most of us don't even grasp the full extent of what's being collected—or how companies are leveraging it. But that said, at least we're adults with the reasoning and wherewithal to spot ads when we see them. Kids can't always tell the difference between advertising and content, and there's a reason that it's against the law to harvest their data and use it against them.
There is a pretty big difference between targeted ads and contextual ads. I grew up seeing contextual advertising every Saturday morning while watching cartoons. Advertisers would place their ads during kids' programming with the understanding that there was a high likelihood of kids seeing it. But just imagine if the Saturday morning cartoons you watched as a kid watched you back. Imagine if they tracked what you did, learned what you liked—and then used that information to try and sell you things. Seems a little invasive, doesn't it?
These companies removing the tracking software from popular kids' apps is a no-brainer. It's not legal or ethical to treat kids like adults and harvest their data. The mechanisms we're used to tolerating as adults just don't retrofit for kids. And it's extremely difficult for parents to keep on top of which apps are trustworthy and which ones aren't—especially when seemingly wholesome companies like Disney are throwing their hat into the tracking ring.
Regulators need to do their part—and developers need to create technology that caters specifically to children. At Kinzoo, we built our app from the ground up for kids and their families, and that meant pursuing a business model that doesn't rely on data harvesting. We'll never sacrifice our users' privacy for the sake of profits because we think that's the kind of stance you need to have when you're serving kids.
A deeper dive
Here are a few helpful resources in case you want to really dig into today's topic:
Josh Golin, the executive director of Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, had this to say about the settlement: “This is going to be the biggest change to the children’s app market that we’ve seen that gets at the business models. On thousands of apps, children will no longer be targeted with the most insidious and manipulative forms of marketing.”
This is also not the first time that Disney has found itself in hot water over apps that track children. Back in 2017, the company was sued over 42 apps that allegedly collected and sold children's information—and in 2011, one of its subsidiaries paid a $3M fine for collecting and disclosing children's information without parents' consent.
TL;DR
Too long; didn't read. It shouldn't be a full-time job to keep up on industry news, so here is a mercifully quick summary of some other notable developments:
Prompted by privacy concerns, many people made the jump from WhatsApp to Telegram. But if you recently switched your family over to the end-to-end encrypted platform, be aware that Neo-Nazis and white supremacists are actively recruiting members there. And, they have apparently toned down their hateful language to attract more people. According to the experts who monitor far-right extremism, this is "an attempt to be more palatable to a broader audience and then lure them into their hateful ideologies, grow their membership, and ultimately radicalize more people."
TikTok is the subject of a new lawsuit in Europe. A former children's commissioner in England, Anne Longfield, alleges that the app illegally collects information from its child users. She says, "It’s been something that’s been really important over lockdown, it’s helped people keep in touch, they’ve had lots of enjoyment. But my view is that the price to pay for that shouldn’t be there—for their personal information to be illegally collected en masse, and passed on to others, most probably for financial gain, without them even knowing about it." And, she anticipates that TikTok could owe affected users billions of pounds in compensation!
And lastly
Here are a few more pieces of original writing from me and my team—just in case you're keen for more:
Instagram for Kids has been in the news a lot since it was first announced. My team put together a handy article for parents outlining a few reasons that they may want to think twice about the social media app aimed at children.
And in other exciting news, Kinzoo is partnering with Look for the Good Project and OPEN National Field Day! Soon, you'll find some awesome experiences in the app that help kids grow their physical, social and emotional skills! Learn more about the collaboration in our latest blog post.
Okay, that's it from me until next time. If you enjoyed this newsletter, and know of another parent who would as well, please feel free to forward it along.